Dr. Riek Gai Kok, a former national minister of health, has been given a new assignment as the chairperson of the Greater Bahr el Ghazal peace and reconciliation committee.
Gai, a prominent politician from the Lou Nuer community in Jonglei State, was removed from the position of health minister in 2020. He has held a number of administrative and political positions in Sudan and South Sudan, including in the disbanded National Congress Party (NCP).
In a decree read on the state-owned South Sudan Broadcasting Corporation (SSBC), President Kiir appointed Dr Riek Gai Kok, a member of the SPLM Party, to head a committee tasked to make peace and reconciliation in the Greater Bahr el Ghazal region, which has been witnessing communal violence.
The South Sudanese leader also appointed Makiir Gai Thiep, a business tycoon from Warrap State, as deputy chairperson of the reconciliation committee.
Members of the new committee include Martison Mathew Oturmoi, retired Anglican Archbishop Daniel Deng Bul, Ambassador Garang Diing Akuang, Anthony Charles, Bor Philip Wutchiok and representatives from Warrap and Western Bahr el Ghazal governments.
As per the decree, the committee’s primary task is to conduct consultative meetings with all the communities affected by inter-communal violence. It is tasked to identify the root causes of their grievances, a crucial step towards fostering peace and reconciliation in the region.
The committee, according to the decree, shall initiate dialogue among the communities and ensure that their grievances are settled through community-based processes and solutions and where appropriate, the committee may recommend to the government and the communities alternative interventions and peace and reconciliation and healing process to address the grievances.
The committee, which has the authority to coopt any relevant member or expert, is expected to complete its work and report back to the president within 90 working days.
In another decree, Kiir fired the Executive Director in his office, Kiir Yor Lual, and his private secretary, Bang Wieu, and replaced them with Ambassador Simon Juach Deng and Atak Santino Majak as Executive Director and Private Secretary in the office of the president, respectively.